JUSTICE DEPARTMENT SEIZES TOP INTERNET SITE INVOLVED
IN COPYRIGHT PIRACY

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The leading public Internet site dedicated to online
copyright piracy was seized by the Justice Department today. Assistant
Attorney General Michael Chertoff and Paul J. McNulty, U.S. Attorney for the
Eastern District of Virginia today announced the seizure of www.iSONEWS.com as
part of a previous plea agreement entered into by a defendant convicted of
violating the criminal copyright laws.

David M. Rocci, 22, of Blacksburg, Va., who used the online screen name
"krazy8," pleaded guilty on December 19, 2002, in U.S. District Court for the
Eastern District of Virginia, to conspiring to import, market and sell
circumvention devices known as modification (or "mod") chips in violation of
the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. Mod chips are designed to circumvent
copyright protections built into game consoles such as the Microsoft Xbox and
Sony Playstation 2, and once installed, allow the unlimited play of pirated
games on those consoles. As a condition of his plea, Rocci agreed to surrender
to the government his public website, www.iSONEWS.com, which he used to
facilitate his illegal activity.

The United States assumed control of the domain name and website this week.
Individuals who now visit www.iSONEWS.com will no longer find the latest news
on new pirated releases by illegal software piracy (or "warez") groups.
Instead, they will view information about the case of United States v. Rocci,
as well as general information about copyright infringement and the criminal
prosecution of individuals engaged in online piracy. In addition to this
information, the site now contains links to the website of the Department of
Justice's Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section,
www.cybercrime.gov, which contains further information on the Department's
criminal anti-piracy efforts.

During a two month period beginning in May 2002, Rocci sold approximately 450
Enigmah Mod Chips throughout the United States and overseas in return for
approximately $28,000. The Enigmah mod chips, illegally imported from the
United Kingdom, were designed specifically for use in the Microsoft Xbox
console. The mod chips contained software code designed specifically to
circumvent the security or access control protections on the Xbox. Once the
built-in security protections were defeated by the mod chips, pirated game
software could be played on the Xbox console.

Rocci used his website as the exclusive means to advertise and market the sale
of mod chips to individuals in the online warez community. The iSONEWS website
was dedicated to providing information about copyright infringement and
piracy, and included pages with news on the illegal warez scene, discussion
forums on piracy, and up-to-date listings of all of the latest pirated
products that were available. The site had over 100,000 registered users and
claimed to receive over 140,000 hits each day.

According to plea papers, Rocci intentionally marketed the Enigmah chip, which
sold for between $45 and $60 a piece, as a device that would allow individuals
to play pirated games from "all release groups" on their Xbox consoles. A
release group is a type of Internet software piracy group that specializes in
being the first to distribute new pirated games, software, movies or music
over the Internet.

"David Rocci developed a public website that specifically catered to the
underground piracy community. He attempted to profit by marketing
circumvention devices to that community knowing they would be used to play
pirated games," said Assistant Attorney General Michael Chertoff. "He thought
that there were no risks associated with his actions. He was wrong and
everyone engaged in the warez scene should take note."

"Piracy is not a game or a hobby, it is a crime," said Paul McNulty. "This
case is another example of our dedication to enforcing the intellectual
property laws of this nation online. Whether you are engaged in conduct like
David Rocci or you are purchasing mod chips to play pirated games, you should
stop," said McNulty. "As David Rocci and others have learned recently, the
consequences of copyright infringement are very real."

Rocci will be sentenced on March 7, 2003 before U. S. District Judge James C.
Cacheris, and could receive a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a
$500,000 fine.

Prosecuting this cases for the United States are Assistant U.S. Attorney
Robert Wiechering; Michael O'Leary, Deputy Chief and Michael DuBose, Senior
Counsel, of the Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section, Department
of Justice. The investigation was conducted by the U.S. Customs Service,
including the Customs CyberSmuggling Center in Fairfax, VA, and the Washington
RAIC Office in Fairfax, VA.